Publisher's Synopsis
Common to the main Pre-Upper Palaeolithic blade assemblages of the Levant is that, technologically speaking, they are closer to Upper Palaeolithic blade production than anything produced earlier. To these were added, more recently, other early assemblages in Europe, Africa and central Asia. They now seem to have had a wide distribution and to have occurred towards the end of the Lower Palaeolithic or the onset of the Middle Palaeolithic. The Intra-Yabrudian blade occurrences in the Levant seem to be the oldest. Although their makers are poorly known, the phenomena seem to have occurred somewhat before the global appearance of modern humans. The contributors to this volume gathered in November 1996 to discuss these issues in the light of recent research. Their purpose was to evaluate the possible relationships between the Yabrudian, Micoquian, Quina and the early blade assemblages, considering the recently established chronological framework and environmental constraints.
